Friend of the Supernatural
by SupernaturalFanatic19
Summary: Hotaru Muccune is an outcast in her family and in her own town, just because of who her father was. With nothing to fear, not even fear itself, Hotaru comes across a mysterious creature who everyone calls the Slenderman. Not affected by the sickness, the Slenderman agrees to get rid of the people who outcasted her. Hotaru will do anything for a friend, even kill.
1. Chapter 1

**Friend of the Supernatural**

**Summary: **Hotaru Muccune is an outcast in her family and in her own town, just because of who her father was. With nothing to fear, not even fear itself, Hotaru comes across a mysterious creature who everyone calls the Slenderman. Not affected by the sickness, the Slenderman agrees to get rid of the people who outcasted her. Hotaru will do anything for a friend, even kill.

_**Chapter 1**_

_Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win. _

_Stephen King_

_I don't know why I bother living. _Hotaru thought and winced silently when she pulled the needle through the skin on her hand. The long and gaping gash on the back of her left hand was painful and it sent waves of pain up her arm every, single second. She slightly lifted her head up, glancing at the bloody handprints on the white walls and tile of the bathroom.

Her bright emerald green eyes glowed with anger and she struggled not to rip the needle through her skin to cause more blood to flow. The flowing of blood had greatly lessened by now and Hotaru sighed, calming herself down. She would have to clean up the mess before her so-called _family _got home.

Being only 17-years old, Hotaru had to stay with her family until she turned 18 and she didn't have much of a choice but take every verbal and physical thing that was thrown at her, even if it killed her. _I'd rather be dead anyway. _She pulled the needle through one last time and cut the string. She cleaned up the blood on her hand and bandaged it up tightly.

She had already taken a shower, dealing with the smaller injuries, including the small gash on her temple and her split lip. "I hate humanity...and this goddamn world..." she muttered underneath her breath. She tossed away the towel that was wrapped around her body and put on a pair of black sweatpants and a red short sleeve shirt. She cleaned up the blood from the walls and tile and put the dirty laundry in the washer and started it.

Hotaru sighed deeply and ran a hand through her long jet black hair. Her long bangs caressed her face and hid her eyes, the deep bags underneath of them. She suddenly heard the screeching of tires from outside and hurried back to her room, looking out the window. She saw her mother, her step-dad and his two kids coming out of the car, laughing and talking.

Hotaru rolled her emerald eyes and turned her light off, sneaking underneath her covers and snuggled deep into them.

"Where's Hotaru?"

"Who gives a shit? She's probably in her room sulking as usual. Hun, why don't you go find out?"

Hotaru closed her eyes, pretending to sleep as she heard the sounds of heels clicking against the wooden hallway floor. Her door opened, letting in light from the hallway and her mother poked her head into the room. "Hotaru?"

The 17-year old kept quiet and pretended to sleep, making her chest rise and fall with each breath. Her mother sighed and closed the door. "She's asleep Jack."

"Well then wake her up! We need entertainment!" the door swung open and Hotaru's light was switched on. "Get up sleeping beauty!"

Hotaru scrunched her eyes and flipped him off. Jack growled and walked over, grabbing a handful of Hotaru's hair and yanked her up and out of bed. She hissed in pain and clutched and clawed at the hand. Jack chuckled. "Yeah, you're awake now Hotaru. Now, give us some entertainment."

She spat in his face. "Go fuck yourself."

He backhanded her across the face with his free hand and then threw her roughly to the ground. Hotaru nearly cried out when she landed on her injured hand and the breath was socked out of her lungs when Jack's foot connected with her stomach.

"Pathetic." he muttered. Jack glanced down at her bandaged hand and smirked, raising his shoe-covered foot and stomped down hard on her injured hand.

Hotaru let out a scream of pain as the intense pain erupted through her hand and crawled up her arm, the pain going all the way up to her brain to register it. Jack laughed. "You really are pathetic Hotaru!" he released her injured hand. "A good for nothing piece of trash that doesn't deserve to live!"

All of a sudden, Hotaru felt rage boil up inside of her and she snarled, jumping up and punching Jack square in the jaw. The man howled out in pain and staggered backwards, flopping against her bed and clutching his jaw in pain.

"Jack!" her mother cried and rushed over to him.

Hotaru's emerald orbs widened when she realized what she had done and without grabbing a jacket or shoes, she bolted out of her room, down the stairs and out of the house and into the dark woods.

Hotaru ran, ran as fast as her skinny legs could take her into the deep, dark woods. Hot, salty tears rolled down her face and she thought deeply of why she was so hated by everyone in her town.

_Maybe it's because my father wasn't well liked either...but just because my mother gets re-married to a fucking jerk makes it all okay for her, but not for me._ Hotaru thought and her running soon became a jog and then a slow walk.

She thought of maybe just staying out in the woods all night, maybe catch a case of hypothermia from the cold weather of October. It was going to be Halloween soon, her favorite holiday. Hotaru came to a halt and the moonlight cast her shadow on the forest ground.

Hotaru sniffed and reached up to rub her tears away when she heard footsteps. Soft footsteps, as if they were slowly taking their time towards her. Suddenly, the moonlight cast over her again and a dark, looming shadow suddenly engulfed her smaller frame. Hotaru glanced up and her eyes slightly widened when she saw the tall, tall man in front of her.

He looked around maybe 9, even ten feet tall and wore a sleek, black suit with a white undershirt and a red tie. His form was thin and slender, his arms and legs at impossible lengths. The one thing that was the most noticible was his face.

He had NO face.

It was just a white sheet, no eyes, no ears, no mouth but she could make out a slight definition of a nose. Hotaru almost stepped back when the man bent towards her, his impossible long body stretching. His face came closer and was about four or five feet away.

And he just STARED at her.

The man didn't make any move, didn't speak or anything. He just stared at her, as if he was observing her. Hotaru swallowed the lump in her throat and glanced into the man's white face, a couple stray tears falling down her cheeks as she spoke.

"Who are you?"

The mysterious man tilted his head to the side slightly, as if he was thinking deeply about her question. All of a sudden, the wind picked up and it blew against Hotaru's bare, pale skin. She shivered and rubbed her arms for warmth. She winced from the pain in her left hand and cradled it to her chest, rubbing it slightly. She briefly wondered if Jack was going to come looking for her, maybe to punish her for nearly breaking his jaw.

"Hotaru!"

Hotaru's emerald eyes slightly widened when she heard Jack's voice. The mysterious man in front of her tilted his head to the noise and made some sort of noise that made Hotaru look at him. He lifted one pale hand and with it, motioned for her to come closer.

Hotaru almost quirked an eyebrow, hesitating. This mysterious man, creature, whatever he seemed to be, wanted her to get closer to him. His tall and slender form towered over her, his shadow engulfing her smaller frame.

Then, she heard a very tiny voice in her head.

_Go with him. _

Hotaru wanted to question the voice. Maybe it was her own subconscious, wanting her to hide from Jack until his temper tantrum was over. _Maybe I should...go with him..._Hotaru thought and swallowed the small lump in her throat and then walked closer to the tall man. His body straightened to his full height and when she was in front of him, he gently placed a hand on her back and slightly pushed her forwards. "What are you doing?" she questioned him, slightly suspicious.

The man shook his head slightly and pushed her fowards again, with a little bit of force this time. Hotaru decided that hiding might be the best idea and without a second thought, allowed the man to push her deeper into the dark woods, staying by her side the entire time.

...

Hotaru was freezing by the time she and the mysterious man arrived at a small cabin. It was a wooden cabin, with the outside kept neat and smoke coming out of the chimney. The teenager blinked and glanced up at the tall man.

He gently pushed her forwards towards the door and with shaky and freezing hands, she wrapped her hand around the doorknob, opened it and walked in.

The cabin was toasty warm and she instantly began to warm up, but only slightly. The man's hand had left her back moments ago and ducked underneath the doorway because of his tremendous heighth. He closed the door behind him and walked further into the room, where a young man came out.

He wore a mask, a plastic mask that reminded Hotaru of a porcelin doll. He was at least five or so inches taller than her and wore dark blue jeans and a black hoodie with the hood up and shoes. He was looking up at the man and then he spoke. "Yes Master."

The young man walked past Hotaru into another room and came out with a thick blanket, motioning for Hotaru to sit on the couch in front of her. She sat down and the young man draped the blanket over her shoulders and she wrapped it around her freezing form tightly, shivering a bit.

The taller man seemed to glide over and reached out, curling his fingers except for his index and pressed the tip to Hotaru's forehead. A few moments later, it left and she felt as though her mind had been expanded, that it was open to more things.

And then she heard a voice, a very deep and low voice. Inside her mind.

_You are the one who came to me. _

Hotaru slightly gasped from the voice inside her mind. It was booming and powerful, sounding almost like a god. "I...what..?"

The tall man moved again, seeming to think deeply. _I can choose whether or not I allow certain individuals to see me. However, not many individuals can see me willingly. It is a rare occurance. _

Hotaru's emerald orbs slightly narrowed as she looked into the faceless being. "You're not human, are you?"

_I am not. _

Hotaru was about to open her mouth, but the man interupted her. _Hush child. We will discuss more the next time. Until then, this needs to be kept a secret. _

"Secret..." Hotaru mumbled and she suddenly felt extremely tired. Her eyes were dropping and she struggled to keep them open. However, she felt her strength leave her and the last thing she heard was the man's voice.

_I am called Slenderman. _


	2. Chapter 2

**Friend of the Supernatural**

_**Chapter 2**_

"_Blood is really warm,  
it's like drinking hot chocolate  
but with more screaming."_

_Ryan Mecum_

Hotaru woke to the sounds of thunder from outside. She groaned and opened her emerald orbs, seeing how dark it was outside already. For it being October, it looked like it was going to storm severely.

That's when she realized she was back in her bedroom.

Hotaru shot up on the mattress and glanced at the alarm clock next to her, cursing when she saw that it was past 8:30...and it was Friday, four days before Halloween. She quickly took a shower and got dressed, hoping she would beat the storm.

She arrived at her school at 8:45 and she decided not to even go to first hour, since it would be ending at 9:05. Hotaru sighed heavily and dragged herself to the attendence office, checking herself in so she wouldn't be counted as an unexcused absense. She just headed into second hour once 9:06 and saw that the television was on, with the news blaring.

The news cut to a video of a house burning down and Hotaru's emerald orbs narrowed. _"This video you are seeing is of a house that was completely burned down by the time the firefighters arrived at the scene. The bodies of the Aikens family was found, except for the youngest of the family, 6-year old Casey Aikens, was found one mile away from her house. No suspects have been confirmed yet, but the police are investigating as we speak." _

"Hmm...weird..." Hotaru commented to herself and had brought out her laptop when a girl's voice spoke to her.

"Is this seat taken?"

Hotaru glanced up and saw a girl around her age, with short and croppy bright red hair and reddish-brown eyes. She had a bit more weight on her than Hotaru and wore green cargo pants, with a black t-shirt and a black plaid shirt with shoes.

"No." Hotaru replied and the girl sat down in the seat next to her.

"So, I guess you heard the news eh?" the girl asked as she brought out her laptop.

"Yeah, doesn't interest me much." Hotaru answered and sniffed a little.

"I'm Nora, I just moved here from California." The girl said with a smile and held her hand out to Hotaru, who just stared at it and then looked away. "Sorry, I don't mean to be a bother."

"No it's not that...I..." Hotaru mumbled and then sighed. "I don't like this place nor this fucking school. I hate the entire town and they hate me."

Nora was slightly taken back. "Why would they hate you? You seem nice."

Hotaru scoffed. "Because of who my father was. Even my own mother and my jackass of a step-dad."

"Who was your father?" Nora questioned.

Hotaru looked at Nora intensley. "Do you really wanna know?" she saw the nod Nora gave her and Hotaru stood up, hovering over Nora's form. "My father...was a serial killer. He kidnapped townsfolk and would eat them to gain abilities, eternal youth, super-strength. I'm the splitting image of my father, which is why everyone hates me. Are you happy now?" Hotaru growled and sat down in her chair, completely ignoring Nora for the rest of the hour.

When 2nd hour was over, Hotaru left the classroom and didn't stop when she heard Nora calling out her name. "Hey! Wait up!" the redhead shouted and grabbed Hotaru's arm. "Look, I'm sorry I asked about your father. If I had known-."

"If you had known, you wouldn't be talking to me." Hotaru replied quietly, yanking her arm away from the redhead. "Just leave me alone."

"Just because you're the splitting image of your father DOESN'T make you like him." Nora spoke and Hotaru turned to her, angrily.

"How would you know?!" Hotaru shouted angrily, her emerald eyes blazing with hatred. "You have no fucking idea what its like to have everyone hate you just because of your father! Maybe I am crazy, maybe I will turn out like my dad. I can see why he killed people. Because they are just like everyone else in this filthy world! Greedy, murderous and selfish!"

"But..."

"Just leave her be. That's what she wants, to be alone like her father was." The head cheerleader of the school, Morgan spoke as she came up to the two girls. "She'll just turn out to be what her father was, a psycho. Hell, I'm surprised she hasn't been sent the mental hospital already."

"Why don't you just shut up and mind your own business?" Hotaru snarled, glaring at Morgan fiercely.

The blonde's eyes narrowed. "What did you just say to me?" she approached Hotaru, but the girl did not back down. In fact, Morgan was surprised to see a fierce look in her eyes, a fire that didn't seem to go out. "Oh...you think that just because you suddenly got brave, you think that would keep everyone from harassing you?" Morgan just laughed shrilly. "Think again Hotaru. You'll never be worth anything. You'll just turn out like the pathetic little human being that your father was. A homicidal maniac."

What happened next, shocked everyone in the hallway, including Morgan's friends. Five seconds had ticked by and Morgan had staggered backwards, clutching her already bruising jaw with both hands. Hotaru stood there, a dark look on her face and her fist curled and up. Her breathing was quiet and no one dared to move.

Morgan groaned quietly and glared at Hotaru with a look of murder. "How dare you...?" Morgan said quietly and then screeched. "How dare you?! How dare you hit me?!"

"Get over yourself." Hotaru replied quietly, yet with such venom in her voice that nearly sent a shiver down Morgan's spine. "You just harass me to make yourself feel better." And with that, she turned on her heel and began to walk away.

Morgan felt rage boil within her and she marched over, grabbed Hotaru's shoulder and spun her around. What surprised Hotaru was that the blonde punched her right back, right in the jaw. The 17-year old staggered backwards, her back hitting the lockers with a loud bang. She groaned quietly and tenderly held her jaw.

"Uh Hotaru-." Nora began, but Hotaru lightly shoved her to the side and marched right at Morgan.

"Come on, give me your best shot." Morgan taunted as the two stood face to face. They were about the same height, with Hotaru being no more than an inch taller than Morgan.

And then it began.

Hotaru made the first move, grabbing a chunk of Morgan's shiny blonde hair and then putting her foot on Morgan's stomach and with a swift move, she pushed Morgan back harshly and everyone heard the echoing rip as the strands were ripped right out of Morgan's scalp. Morgan was in complete shock as she stared at the blonde strands in Hotaru's hand.

She began to shake in anger while Hotaru just glared at her harshly and let the strands fall to the floor. "NOW YOU'RE DEAD!" Morgan shrieked and to Hotaru's surprise, tackled her right to the ground. "Bitch!" she clawed Hotaru across her left cheek with her sharp nails, leaving bright red gashes. She continued to slap, hit and punch Hotaru where she could hit her to the point where Hotaru groaned quietly from Morgan hitting her ribs countless times.

And what pissed Morgan off the most, was that Hotaru had a fierce look in her eyes and didn't even try to fight back. "Fight back!" Morgan grabbed the front of Hotaru's shirt, slightly lifting her up. "Fight back you freak!"

Hotaru's right eye was already starting to bruise and she had a river of blood flowing down her face. Hotaru glared at Morgan with her good eye and Morgan's lip curled up into a sneer and she was just about to hit Hotaru again when...

"What do you think you're doing Morgan?!"

Every student in the hallway that had been staring down at the two girls turned their attention to the principle, Morgan's father, who marched down the hallway towards them angrily. "Dad-!"

"I don't want to hear it Morgan. I thought you knew better than this." He glared at Morgan angrily and she cringed back. "Get up and get to the office before I drag you down there myself."

"But she started it dad-!"

"I don't care!" he bellowed. "And the rest of you, get to class before you all get tardies!"

The rest of the students scrambled off to class and Morgan whimpered quietly before getting off Hotaru and grabbing her things before her father decided to smack her right in the hallway. Hotaru groaned as she struggled to get up and rolled onto her stomach, using her hands and knees to prop herself up.

Nora kneeled down beside her. "Here, let me help you-." When she touched Hotaru's arm, the black-haired girl just snarled and yanked her arm away.

"Don't touch me." She said quietly, yet harshly and managed to stand up, although she was slightly wobbly. She grabbed her things that had fallen to the ground and grimaced as she stood back up. "F-fuck..."

"Hotaru, go to the nurse." The principle spoke. "I will deal with my daughter when I get back to my office. I can excuse you for the rest of the day-."

"Don't bother. I'm leaving anyway." Hotaru mumbled and slid her coat on. She put her beanie over her head and ignored the man's protests as she walked out of the school.

...

Hotaru sniffled, trying to dry her tears and roughly wiped them away with the back of her good hand. She was cold, but she just felt the hole in her heart become even bigger and by that time, she knew it would never be filled. Not even if she met the love of her life, it would never be fully filled. _Why dad...? Why did you make everyone hate me? I'm your shadow...and I'll just become like you. _

All of a sudden, Hotaru became aware that someone was staring at her. She glanced over to the left, her face against the cold breeze and saw a young man, around 18-19 years old, just standing there, about 10-20 feet away from her. He wore dark jeans and a black sweatshirt with shoes and she could faintly see a dark t-shirt underneath. His hood was down and he had blonde hair that was slightly longer than normal, curling around his neck and just normal green eyes, unlike Hotaru's bright emerald ones.

The two just stared at each other and then the young man spoke. "My Master sent me to find you. He sensed your...discomfort."

"Who are you?" Hotaru questions.

The young man sighed softly and walked over, sitting beside Hotaru on the bench. "I usually do not give my names to others, but my name is Jason. My Master, the Operator, is the one you encountered late last night."

She scoffed quietly and looked away. "And here I thought it was all a dream..."

Jason looked at her more closely, seeing how badly bruised and bloodied her face was. "You are injured. Master will not be pleased…." He murmured and then stood up, holding out his hand to Hotaru. "Come with me. I will tend to your injuries."

Hotaru stared at the hand for a moment, hesitating. Then, she stood up. "Lead the way."


	3. Chapter 3

**Friend of the Supernatural**

_**Chapter 3**_

"_We are fascinated by the darkness in ourselves, we are fascinated by the shadow, we are fascinated by the boogeyman."_

_Anthony Hopkins_

"Where are you taking me?" Hotaru questioned as she and Jason walked through the woods. They had been walking for about 25 minutes now and Hotaru was becoming impatient, since Jason wouldn't answer her questions. "Jason-."

Jason suddenly held up a finger, motioning for her to be silent. Hotaru frowned and was about to open her mouth, but Jason suddenly grabbed her wrist and shoved her up against a tree, slapping a hand over her mouth. Hotaru struggled a little, but stopped when Jason shushed her with a finger to his lips. His hand fell away from her mouth, a bit of blood on his palm from her mouth.

Jason was looking out from behind the tree. Hotaru glanced out also and both saw a male, around Jason's age, with dark, almost black hair. Hotaru couldn't see the color of his eyes, but he appeared the same height as Jason and had a form that was fit, probably from running or swimming. He wore a pair of black jeans, a white shirt and a warm grey coat with it being zipped up. When he glanced around, both Hotaru and Jason went behind the tree again.

They both heard footsteps fade away and when they looked, the male was completely out of sight. Jason's lips were set into a very thin line and he looked annoyed. "Who was that?" Hotaru questioned.

"Another...subordinate of the Master. Although he does not cooperate much..." Jason mumbled the reply. "Come, we are almost to the cabin."

It took another ten minutes to reach the cabin and Jason brought out a key and unlocked the door. They walked in and he closed the door, locking it from inside. Hotaru didn't say anything and was set down on the couch, while Jason disappeared further into the cabin.

When he came back out, he had a first aid kit and towels. Hotaru sighed, knowing this is gonna be a painful experience.

...

After an hour of tending to wounds, Hotaru decided she would try to get home. Jason was against it. "I can take care of myself Jason." Hotaru muttered and stood up, intending to leave right away, but Jason's hand wrapped around her wrist. "Jason, let go."

"I will...but be careful. The Master will not be happy if something happens."

After that, Hotaru felt him release her wrist and she left the cabin to get home. Truthfully, she didn't want to go home, but where else would she go? She just wanted to get away, get away from everything. Around 8 pm, a couple hours since she left the forest, she walked down the dark street that was only lit up by the street lamps.

She pulled her coat around her form tighter and shivered a little, seeing her breath in the darkness. All of a sudden, she heard what sounded like footsteps. Her bright emerald orbs glanced over her shoulder to look behind her, but she saw nothing. She continued walking down the street and heard the same footsteps again.

This time, she stopped and slowly glanced over her shoulder. She saw someone standing there, about a hundred feet away from her. It was a man, around her age and wore the same clothes she saw on the man earlier, except this time he wore a mask, the same one she saw Jason wearing the first time she met him. She glanced down at his hand and saw a knife.

_Shit. _She thought and then broke into a sprint. She ran down the street, with the mysterious, masked man running after her. Hotaru breathed heavily as she ran, trying to find some place or store that was open. She saw her house coming up and quickened her running pace. She hurried to the front door and opened it, thanking God it wasn't locked.

She had just closed the door when she heard a loud thud against it from outside, indicating that the masked man had ran into it. Hotaru quickly locked the front door and went around the house, making sure every window and door was locked.

"Okay...it's okay Hotaru." Hotaru whispered to herself, trying to calm down her racing heart.

And then she heard a distant crash, like glass breaking.

"The basement..." she whispered and the power suddenly went out. "Shit..." she swore quietly to herself and grabbed a flashlight from the desk drawer. She dropped her bag onto the couch and quietly, carefully walked to the basement.

She opened the door, hearing it creak as it swung open. Hotaru swallowed the lump in her throat, knowing this was probably gonna get herself killed. She walked down the basement stairs and shined the flashlight around for the fuse box. She found it a couple seconds later and walked towards it, intending to switch the power back on.

Hotaru switched the power to ON and the lights flickered as they came back on. Then she heard rushed footsteps behind her and whirled around to see the masked man lunge right at her with the knife poised and ready to kill. Hotaru ducked and the knife went into the wall right above her head.

She kicked her leg out, hitting the man's shin and causing him to fall, the knife still imbedded in the wall. Hotaru yanked the knife out of the wall and was about to run towards the stairs when her leg was grabbed and she fell to the basement floor, the knife clattering away from her and into the corner of the basement next to the stairs.

"Damnit!" she swore and turned onto her side as the masked man roughly pulled her towards him by her legs. She kicked her left leg out and heard a crack as it connected with the man's masked face. He let out a pained groan and fell onto his back, clutching his covered face. An idea came to her mind and she hurried, rolling the man onto his back and sitting on his back, grabbing his arms and twisting them behind his back. He wasn't that much bigger than her and for someone her size, she did have some strength on her. Well, her dad taught her how to fight. One of the things she learned from him.

The masked man groaned and struggled in her grasp. Hotaru glanced around for something to tie his wrists with and spotted some rope on the floor next to the fuse box. She managed to grab the rope with one hand while holding the man's wrists behind his back and then tied his wrists together with the rope. She heard him groan again, but she didn't care. She wanted to know who he was and why he tried to stab her.

The black and white mask was cracked diagonally across and Hotaru was surprised it was even holding itself together. She frowned and grabbed the edge of the mask, yanking it off the man's head and tossing it to the side. She saw that the man was the same one her and Jason had seen in the woods hours earlier.

The man had some blood right underneath his nose and she realized that's where she must've hit him with her foot.

"Don't move." Hotaru ordered and she got up to retrieve the knife from the corner of the room. She grabbed it and then walked over, sitting down next to the man, but keeping her distance from him. "So, let's start with a few questions. What's your name?"

The man breathed quietly and then he spoke. "A-Alex. My name is Alex."

"Alright Alex, why were you trying to kill me?" she questioned.

"I-I wasn't trying to kill you. Maybe cut you, but I wasn't ordered to kill you. He would kill me if I had done that."

Hotaru quirked an eyebrow. "Who is he?"

"You know...you've met him. The Operator, the Tall Man. Whatever else people call him." Alex struggled to get himself onto his back and he was able to, getting himself to sit up and against the wall.

"Slenderman." Hotaru mumbled, fingering the knife in her hand. She ran her finger down the blade and didn't wince when it cut into her skin and drew blood. "And why did he send you after me?"

"I...I don't remember. Sometimes when I'm around him, I can't remember some things." Alex mumbled his reply, looking over to the side.

Hotaru put her finger in her mouth and sucked on the blood for a few seconds before pulling away. She then put the knife down and scooted towards Alex, reaching around to untie his wrists.

"You...you believe me..?" he questioned quietly.

"Let's just say I do." she grumbled and completely untied his wrists. "Just get out of here before my _family _gets home." she spat the word with disgust, like it left a bad taste in her mouth.

Alex glanced at her with a strange look of curiosity on his face. _Maybe she doesn't get along with her family..._He thought and then stood up. "You're letting me go?"

She sighed. "Yeah." she ushered to the broken window. "I'll probably get blamed for the window anyway. Just get out of here before you get caught."

Alex bent down and grabbed his knife. He gave Hotaru a look before going to the broken window. "Oh...uh...what's your name?"

"...Hotaru."

...

When the others got home, Jack had gone down to the basement and yelled about the broken window. Hotaru replied that someone had tried to break into the house.

His response.

He smacked her across the face. Hard.

"Liar. You probably broke it." Jack snarled and pushed her roughly, causing her back to hit the wall.

Hotaru just slid down and stayed there, not even bothering to get up. Jack scoffed. "You are so pathetic, a waste of life. I'm surprised your mother hasn't disowned you yet. She doesn't love you, nobody loves you. You're all alone Hotaru. What's your reason for living?"

Hotaru looked down and saw drops of blood fall down from her chin and soak into the tan carpet. She felt the rage, the darkness boiling up inside her. She saw the shadows of the room twitching, or was it her mind playing tricks on her?

"Answer me!" Jack shouted and smacked her again, grabbing the front of her shirt. She didn't answer, merely stared at him from behind her long black locks. All of a sudden, the atmosphere of the room became thick with tension and Jack himself saw the shadows of the room twitching. They seemed to gather up on the wall behind Hotaru.

Jack let a gasp escape his lips as something tall, dark and sinister gathered up behind Hotaru. It reached up all the way to the ceiling, which was a good nine to ten feet. He released Hotaru's shirt and backed away towards his wife and kids, who were also glancing up in horror at the figure that seemed to emerge from the shadows.

It's hands were large, larger than any human male. The tips were sharp, not even looking like fingers at all. A torso formed from the shadows, covered in the top of a sleek, black suit with a white undershirt and a tie the color of blood. A pale neck formed and the head, which was completely devoid of any facial features at all.

"W-w-what the hell is that?!" Hotaru's mother screamed, clutching to Jack tightly and the kids huddling at her legs.

Hotaru glanced up slightly and saw many tendrils burst from the being's back, the ends sharp as knives. The Slenderman seemed to glanced down at Hotaru and she heard his powerful, booming voice in her mind. _No more blood, no more tears. Remember that Hotaru. _

Jack then moved, rushing over to the desk and pulled out a handgun. He took the safety off and fired at the sinister being. With one swift move of one of its large hands, the bullets were sliced in half. Jack felt all the blood drain from his face and he fired again and again, getting the same result each time. He whimpered and the handgun fell from his grasp.

Before he could even make a move, one of its large hands grabbed him, palm against Jack's face and devouring him of any air. Jack thrashed and kicked in the creature's grasp as it lifted him up, the other hand reaching around to grab one of Jack's flailing legs. Hotaru's mother, the kids and Hotaru herself watched and heard as Jack's leg was crushed underneath the being's monstrous strength.

Jack's scream of pain and agony was muffled by the creature's hand. With one swift move, Jack's leg was completely ripped off. The air turned to the color of red, as spots of blood splattered on the family members and on Hotaru's face. Her face was devoid of any emotion, taking on a mere dull look as she heard Jack's scream of pain for the second time.

The tendrils that sprouted from the Slenderman's back had grown longer and more sinister, going around the being's body and towards Jack's own flailing one. Hotaru knew this was the end of her step-dad and her torturer.

Tendrils wrapped around his flailing body, crushing his bones. The man gurgled as a waterfall of bright, crimson blood poured from his mouth. And with one last squeeze, blood splattered all over the room and on the humans in the room.

The oldest woman screamed in complete horror, grabbing the kids and running out to the car as their lives depended on it. The mangled corpse fell to the already blood-soaked floor and Hotaru for once, felt some sort of peace in her mind. She glanced up at the tall creature before her and with one blood-soaked hand; it touched her cheek and trailed across, leaving bloody trails.

"Thank you….." she murmured.

And with that, the Slenderman disappeared back into the shadows, where he belonged.


	4. Chapter 4

**Friend of the Supernatural**

_**Chapter 4**_

_Thoughts are the shadows of our feelings - always darker, emptier and simpler._

_Friedrich Nietzsche_

Hotaru felt the joy inside.

She didn't care that she was covered in her step-father's and her own blood.

The only thing she cared about was that the fact that one of her tormentors, was dead. Gone, his body crushed beyond anything human. A smile came to her face, a smile of happiness. The trails of blood on her cheek slowly trickled down her skin, dripping off her jaw.

She tilted her head to the side and briefly wondered what Morgan and her friends were doing. She pursed her lips and quietly thought to herself. _She's probably with her boyfriend...hmmm, maybe I should kill him too. _

Kill.

She wanted to kill her tormentors, kill them so they would be out of her life. Hell, she wanted to burn the entire town to the ground. The town wasn't that big and with Slenderman's help, she could easily do it within a few hours.

Her thoughts then wondered to Jason, the girl she met at school and Alex. They probably lived in town and she didn't hate them. They only wanted to help, they weren't bad, they weren't sinful. Hotaru's bright, emerald orbs glowed with excitement as the scene of people screaming for their lives and the tunnels running with their blood came to her mind vividly.

When did she become so murderous?

Hotaru chuckled, flexing her fingers. "They'll pay...they'll all fucking _pay_."

...

Nora sighed and ran her fingers through her short hair. She was having some slight trouble on her math homework, which included complex equations and numbers mixed up to make no sense whatsoever. She hated math with a passion, but was partially good at figuring out the equations.

"Ugh, I can't deal with this anymore!" Nora exclaimed and slammed her textbook shut. The homework wasn't due until the day after, so she decided to work on the rest tomorrow, either during school or before she went to bed.

She was just about to wander downstairs to find something to eat when there was a loud rumble and a loud crashing sound, accompanied by the crackling of wood and fire. Nora gasped and rushed downstairs, only to yelp and halt in her tracks when the bottom half of the stairs were missing, a large gaping hole where they had been.

Everything was on fire.

Nora swallowed the lump in her throat and took a few steps back before running and taking a giant leap, landing safely on the ground in the living room. "Mom! Dad!" she called out for her parents and walked further into the living room as scorching flames quickly spread. She looked up and saw a large hole in the ceiling and then looked down at the pile of debris and wood.

Looking closely, she saw a liquid slowly pouring out from underneath the wood.

Her eyes widened and she let out a gasp when she saw two arms of different sides sticking out from the debris.

"No..." she whispered, shaking her head as she felt hot, salty tears build up in her eyes. Nora gripped her head and bit back a choked sob that threatened to come out.

That's when she heard screaming coming from outside.

Nora hurried out of her burning house and her eyes widened even more when she realized it wasn't just her house, but the entire town was on fire. People were screaming and trying to escape. Some were already lying on the cold ground, while some were running around as flames engulfed them.

"Who...?" Nora whispered to herself and a woman came up to her, gripping her shoulders.

"You have to run! Pl-!" before she could finish, a knife came through her eye and she gurgled as blood trickled down her face. The woman collapsed to the ground and Nora looked up as footsteps approached her.

A girl with jet black hair, blood already covering her from head to toe. Her head was down and she had a sort of sharp knives in her hand. Nora also saw an axe at her waist and she gasped when the girl lifted her head.

Emerald eyes filled with murder and hatred.

"Hotaru...?" Nora quietly questioned.

Hotaru lifted her head at the sound of her name. "How their screams are music to my ears...my revenge is almost complete."

Nora rushed forwards and gripped Hotaru's shoulders tightly. "Hotaru, why are you doing this?! You told me you were nothing like your father!"

"No." Hotaru said quietly and shook her head. "They were right. I _am _my father. My father's blood runs through me and now I am him completely. They were right...they were right..." she began to laugh and Nora couldn't believe how dark her laugh sounded.

"Snap out of it!" Nora shouted and slapped the dark-haired girl across the face. "Hotaru, snap out of it! You can't do this! You can't kill people! You can't murder an entire town because of what they did to you!"

Hotaru smiled. "Of course I can. It's called revenge." her smile disappeared into a frown and she tightly grabbed Nora's wrists and yanked them off her shoulders. "You can stop pestering me and escape, or you can die. I'd rather not kill you, since you out of four people were nice to me."

Nora's mouth moved, but she lost her voice. She was speechless. With that, Hotaru turned around and began walking away.

"Hotaru!" Nora screamed once she found her voice and ran after her. "You can't do this!" As she reached out to grab Hotaru's shoulder, something think wrapped around her neck tightly and lifted her off the ground. Nora gasped and dug her fingers into the thing that was wrapped around her neck and opened her eyes to see that is was some sort of dark tendril.

She looked ahead of her and nearly screamed out of fear when she saw the towering, pale figure standing beside Hotaru. His long arms were at his sides and his featureless face stared at her. The tendril tightened around her neck, cutting off her air supply-

"Let her live." Hotaru spoke as she walked away.

The figure disappeared, along with the tendril and Nora collapsed to the ground, coughing loudly and holding her throat. She looked all over for the figure and Hotaru, but she saw neither of them.

She just saw the town as it burned.

...

As the small town burned to the ground, three figures stood on the hill that overlooked it.

Hotaru felt her heart leap with joy as the town burned. She smiled, her emerald eyes gleaming. Slenderman and Jason stood on either side of her, both of them quiet.

_What is your plan now child? _the tall being questioned in her mind.

"I'm not sure. I'll have to hide, probably in the forest. I want to be on my own for awhile." Hotaru replied. "If I need help, I'll call."

Along with Jason, Slenderman disappeared, teleporting to god knows where. Hotaru stuffed her hands in her hoodie pockets and began walking away, when she heard a loud gunshot.

Extreme pain erupted through her left forearm and she yelled out in pain, clutching her arm. She looked down at it and saw the bullet had gone through all the way. Hotaru snapped around and her eyes narrowed in anger when she saw Morgan standing there, a handgun in her left hand. Her right arm was severely burned, along with some parts on her face and neck. Morgan had a look of fierce anger in her eyes.

"You..." Morgan snarled and her body trembled. "YOU BITCH! You killed everyone!"

Hotaru just stared at her in silence. "So?"

"You really are crazy. You're just like your father!"

"You're right."

Morgan was taken back and she blinked in confusion. "What?"

Hotaru smiled. That smile sent violent shivers down Morgan's spine. "I said, you're right. You're absolutely right. I _am_ crazy. I _am _just like my father. And you know what?" she paused for a moment. "I _love _it."

Hotaru then ran towards Morgan at an inhuman speed and smacked the gun out of her hands. Morgan had no time to even gasp and her throat was grabbed and Hotaru slammed her onto the ground. Morgan cried out when the back of her head bounced against the grass and she found herself vulnerable.

Hotaru smirked. She fucking _loved _it when she saw the fear in the eyes of who she is about to kill. Hotaru reached behind her and pulled out her axe, while still holding Morgan down by her throat. The other girl's eyes widened to saucers and she struggled under Hotaru's grip, sobbing and screaming.

"Let me go! Please!"

"No. You're the last of my revenge Morgan. Oh and say hello to Satan for me." Hotaru laughed as she raised the axe above her head and then brought it down swiftly, cutting Morgan's head into two. Morgan's body twitched and Hotaru let go of her throat, her eyes traveling down to Morgan's stomach.

She heard a rumor that Morgan was pregnant while still in school.

With that said, Hotaru yanked the axe out of Morgan's split head and then slammed it down on Morgan's chest, ripping her open all the way down to her abdomen. Blood splattered on her skin and then Hotaru knelt down, feeling around for the fetus.

A few minutes later, she pulled her hand back, which was covered in blood that dripped from her hand. "Just as I thought." She murmured. "You lied."

Hotaru glanced over at the town that she once called her home. She then turned on her heel and walked away. Now she was free from her tormentors.

Forever.


	5. Chapter 5

**Friend of the Supernatural**

_**Chapter 5**_

_Love is much like a wild rose, beautiful and calm, but willing to draw blood in its defense._

_Mark Overby_

"It is the three month anniversary of the small town in Maine that was completely burned to the ground. The area is still being cleaned up as we speak, although officials have raised the death toll to 300, with at least 50 still missing. A young female named Hotaru Muccane is wanted by authorities. She is described as being around 17-18 years old with long black hair and green eyes. She is also described as being heavily armed and very dangerous. If you know any information, call the number at the bottom..."

Alex sighed softly to himself and ran a hand through his dark hair. He tightened his coat around his form and continued walking down the sidewalk. It was now January 24th, the three month anniversary of his hometown that burned down.

He briefly wondered if Hotaru was the cause of it and his pale blue orbs glanced up into the sky as snow began to fall. He remembered when he had to escape from his apartment when the fire broke out. Nobody knew where it started and the officials had said that one person couldn't be responsible.

Alex vaguely wondered if the tall man was also responsible. He only shuddered, seemingly from the cold and wandered back to his apartment. He was now living in Janesville, Wisconsin, which didn't have too bad of winters.

By the time he finally got into his apartment, his hands were freezing. He kicked the door shut with the heel of his shoe and rubbed his hands together to give them warmth. Once he finally warmed up his hands, he shed his coat and shoes, leaving him in dark jeans, a long-sleeved grey shirt and white socks.

He walked into the kitchen and set the pot up to make some hot chocolate. Once that was done, he poured himself a cup and put about five marshmallows in it. He grabbed the remote from the counter and turned the TV on as he sat down. He took a couple sips of his hot chocolate and changed the channel to a Christmas movie.

Alex had just swallowed the marshmallow he had put in his mouth when he heard a loud creak from the hallway. He lifted his head and heard another creak. This time, he put his hot chocolate down and slowly, quietly walked into the hallway. He didn't see anyone or anything that could've caused the creaking.

Don't say hello. That might make the person come out. Alex thought and was tempted to grab the gun from his bedroom. He decided against that and listened closely for the creaking noise again.

He heard it again and this time, it came from the bathroom. He swallowed the lump in his throat as his hand wrapped around the doorknob. Then, he heard a groan, followed by a loud thud. He swung open the door and gasped when he saw a person, a girl lying unconscious on the floor.

And it wasn't just any girl.

Alex let out a gasp when he saw the girl's face. "Hotaru!" he rushed to her side and immediately touched her skin, nearly pulling his hands back when he realized how cold her skin was. He felt her clothes and felt that they were soaked and freezing.

Did she fall into a lake or something? He thought and then carefully flipped the girl onto her back and began dragging her towards the tub. He looked down at her pale face and saw a gash on her left temple, blood still streaming down the side of her face. Maybe she was attacked...

He managed to lift her body into the tub and into a sitting position with her form facing the showerhead. He turned the water on warm and then switched the showerhead on. When the water rained down on Hotaru's form and she immediately exclaimed, the water rudely waking her up.

"Hotaru, stop struggling." Alex said, trying to be calm as he grabbed the girl's flailing hands, warming them up with his own. He leaned forwards and carefully took her soaked trench coat off, laying it over the tub. Hotaru let out a quiet whimper, moving her head from side to side every so often. Her eyes weren't open yet, so Alex realized she wasn't awake yet.

Alex glanced down and saw several claw marks that covered most of her right arm. They weren't bleeding, but they looked red and angry. What happened to her? He thought, his eyes softening. He reached out to touch her temple, but he suddenly found himself on his back with both of Hotaru's hands wrapped around his throat.

Dark locks hid Hotaru's face, so it was difficult to see her expression. Alex grabbed her wrists with his hands and began to struggle when she tightened her grip. "H...Hotaru...it's...m-me...Alex..." he gasped.

Immediately when he said that, Hotaru's hands fell away from his neck and she collapsed next to him, coughing and wheezing a little. Alex gently grabbed the underneath of her arms and dragged her back into the tub, this time with him behind her. He didn't care that the water was soaking his clothes; the only thing he cared about was tending to Hotaru. If she didn't get warmed up, she would die of hypothermia.

The black-haired girl whimpered a little, coughing a little as Alex held her close to his warm body. "A...Alex...?" she spoke, her voice hoarse and scratchy.

He put his cheek against her head, sighing deeply. "Yes, I'm here. Everything's gonna be alright..." he murmured into her hair.

And they both just sat there for the longest time.

...

"Here."

Hotaru glanced up to see a cup of hot chocolate in Alex's hand as he held it in front of her face. "Thanks." she mumbled and took the cup from him, immediately taking a sip and then setting it down on the table she sat at.

Alex sat across from her and observed her. Her skin looked paler than normal, almost sickly. She wore a pair of his jeans and a short sleeve shirt until her clothes were washed and dried. Her entire right arm was bandaged, with a band-aid over her temple wound. Alex had gotten into dry clothes also and took a large sip of his hot chocolate.

"How did you get in here?" he asked after swallowing.

Her green eyes, which had been bright before, were now dull and empty as she glanced up at him. "Your bedroom window was unlocked. Had I known you lived here, I would've gone somewhere else."

Alex was taken back and…slightly insulted by her comment. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"The authorities are chasing me Alex." She mumbled and took another sip of her hot chocolate. "Didn't you see the report on the news earlier?"

"Yeah I did, but….." he paused before speaking again. "Why were you soaked to the bone? And how did you get those wounds?"

"You ask a lot of questions." Hotaru muttered, but spoke louder when she answered his questions. "I fell into a lake, not to mention it was freezed over, but the ice wasn't thick enough. I thought the ice would break my fall when I fell over the ledge, but I went right through it. I was lucky enough to get out before my limbs went completely numb."

"And the wounds…?"

"Wolves." She replied simply. "The one on my temple was from a branch when I was running and the ones on my arm were from wolves. I killed a couple of them with my knife, but then I had to run. That's when I fell off a ledge and into the lake." She explained and took yet another sip of her drink.

Alex stared at her with pale blue eyes before he spoke again. "Hotaru…..what happened at your town?"

He saw Hotaru flinch and she hung her head, her hair hiding her face. "I don't want to talk about it…"

"Hotaru, you can trust me-."

Before he could finish, Hotaru had slammed her cup down, nearly breaking it and hot chocolate spilled all over her hands. "No I can't!" she shouted. "I can't trust anyone! How can I put my trust in anyone when they all hate me?! My whole town hated me! Just because of whom my father was! Even my own mother hated me!"

She pushed the cup of hot chocolate away from her and folded her arms, burying her face in them. "I've never had any family…my dad was a serial killer before I was even born. He was never caught until many years later and then executed. E….everyone hated me….." her voice began to break. "Because I'm the splitting image of my father. Everyone claimed I would go crazy and turn out like him. Like father, like daughter huh?"

Hotaru lifted her head and Alex's eyes filled with sympathy when he saw tears streaming down her cheeks. "But….they were right…Heh." She chuckled and her lips curled up into a smile. "They were right. Jack was right, Morgan was right, everyone was right!" she started laughing and it sent chills down Alex's spine.

Hotaru's laughing calmed down and then stopped all together. Now she just sat there, with burned hands and a blank expression on her face. Alex blinked and then set his empty cup down, getting up and walking over to Hotaru. He gently grabbed her arm and guided her over to the sink, where he turned the cold water on and put both her hands underneath the running water.

The skin was red, but not too red, indicating that she was not burned too badly. He sighed softly and told her to stay while he went to go get the burn cream. He came back with the cream and bandages and turned the water off, drying her hands off with a towel. Once he had her hands in the cream, he wrapped bandages around her hands.

"You look like a partial mummy." Alex joked, hoping she would laugh.

She didn't.

"Sorry…I was just trying to make you laugh…or smile at least."

"Not your fault…." Hotaru mumbled, hanging her head a little. "I have no laughs or smiles left in me. Just pain and hatred."

Alex only sighed. He then showed her the guest room and once she flopped down on the bed, she was immediately asleep.

He only smiled a little and was able to get her legs underneath the covers. He put the covers up to her shoulders and looked at her once last time before leaving the room.


End file.
